20111130 Most teens reluctant to fight for country, poll shows

Most teens reluctant to fight for country, poll shows

By Rich Chang / Staff Reporter, with CNA

Although a recent survey that showed that most Taiwanese teenagers would be reluctant to fight for their country, a Ministry of National Defense (MND) spokesperson yesterday played down the results.

Addressing the survey carried out by the Chinese-language CommonWealth magazine, the results of which were published on Monday, MND spokesman David Lo (羅紹和) said it used hypothetical questions and that the sampling methods and design could affect the results.

Lo said the ministry had educated people who were loyal and proud of their country and believed most people would rise up to defend the country in its hour of need.

More than 60 percent of the junior and senior high school students polled identified with the core concepts of “civic duties,” including respecting national symbols and paying taxes, the poll showed.

More than seven out of 10 respondents (71.8 percent) said people should stand up when they hear the national anthem or see the national flag being raised, while 68.5 percent said they did not agree with “dodging military service.”

According to 61.5 percent of the teens, paying taxes is a civic duty regardless of a person’s satisfaction with the government and its policies, while 65.8 percent said people should stand up when a national leader appears at a public venue whether they like them or not.

However, fewer than two out of five respondents (38.7 percent) said they would be willing to fight or see family members fight if a war were to break out between their country and another, while 44.3 percent said they were unwilling.

The results indicate that the conventional values of “sacrificing oneself for the country” and “absolute obedience” were no longer “unshakable” among young people, the magazine said.

Meanwhile, 66.9 percent of the students polled believed same-sex marriage should be made legal.

The survey polled 3,715 high school students nationwide aged between 12 and 17 to identify the differences between their civic values and those of older generations.